Vincent’s 5.2 Klipsch home theater living room

24 February 2022

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When designing his new house, Vincent imagined a living room that ideally combined a living space and his passion for cinema. A few months later, the result is a stunning Klipsch 5.2-channel home theater installation with a large screen measuring 4.11m (base).

How big is your home theater?

My home theater installation is in my 43m2 living room.

My home theater installation with a 4.11m screen and 5.2 Klipsch system takes place in my 43m2 living room.

How long did it take you to build this home theater?

It took about a year and a half to design the house and therefore this room.

When did you decide to design a room dedicated to home theater? Why create a personal movie theater?

Since I was 6 years old, I have always been an admirer of cinema, then one day during my adolescence, I was offered my first video projector, and from there on, everything fell into place: purchase of a Yamaha AV retriever and inheriting speakers from my father (sound laboratory). As soon as I left my dorm room, I invested bit by bit, getting higher-end products at each stage by following the market’s evolution. DVDs were replaced by Blu-rays, then Blu-rays by 4K Blu-rays. It’s an endless circle where you always want more. For my last house build, I didn’t want a dedicated room, because I didn’t want to isolate myself when I invite people over. I wanted to share my passion. This is why I decided to design the home theater directly in my living room.

I have always admired cinema and designing my house was the perfect opportunity to plan the living room to best suit this passion.

How did you organize the construction work? What was the most challenging aspect?

As I work in construction, the first room drawn on my plan was the cinema living room. I had several factors to consider: aesthetics, functionality, thermal study compliance, budget, choice of projector, projection distance and screen size. All these elements had to meet my expectations.

I had several factors to consider when designing my cinema room: aesthetics, functionality, thermal study compliance, budget, choice of projector, projection distance and screen size.

What was the overall budget for the system and construction work?

I spent about €7,900 for the material. For the construction, as it is not a dedicated room, I would say the price of the house…

Can you list the equipment used and tell us why you chose these brands?

My home theater system consists of the following:

My entire speaker set is from Klipsch, primarily because the manufacturer’s signature copper-plated speaker is so classy. My first purchase was the Klipsch R-115SW subwoofer, following numerous reviews on the internet. I went for it without having listened to it and I was surprised by the powerful sound and the bass that was very present. It made me want to trust the brand for the rest of my installation, with a second identical subwoofer, a Klipsch RP-440C center speaker, Klipsch RP-280F floorstanders and Klipsch PRO-180-RPC LCR surrounds.

For the projection, I swapped my Panasonic PT6000AE for the Epson EH-TW9400 projector. In my budget, the latter corresponds perfectly to my configuration: projection distance, image size and motorized lens to quickly switch from 16/9 to 2:35 with format/position recall.

Thanks to its motorized lens and its position recall, the Epson EH-TW9400 video projector allows me to quickly switch from a 16:9 image to a 2:35 display.

How do you control the system (applications, universal remote controls, etc.)?

I use the remotes and a mobile app from an iPhone. Home automation is entrusted to the Delta Dore system for the management of roller shutters and lights.

Did you use an acoustic treatment? If not, do you plan to use one in the future?

Alas, in a living room, the aesthetic aspect passes above the acoustic constraints, but the whole living room has flooring with underfloor heating which is on olyethylene expansion joint fillerboard. This type of flooring offers fairly good infrabass isolation. For the reverb, I haven’t done anything for the moment.

As the home theater system is in the living room, it is difficult to use acoustic treatment without affecting the aesthetics of the room. The floor, however, offers very good bass damping.

What is the first movie you watched in this room? Which one gave you a taste for home theater?

The first film I watched in this room was the Pixar movie Coco for its colors and musicality. I wanted to see what the Epson EH-TW9400 projector was capable of. The movie that gave me a taste for home theater was Jurassic Park 1, when I was a child.

How often do you use this home theater room?

Every day, without exception.

I use my theater every day. This is the advantage that it is installed directly in the living room.

Do you watch anything other than movies? Sporting events? Series? Video games? Concerts?

I also use this room to watch TV, series, listen to music, stream photos from the cloud and even play video games.

I use my room to watch TV, series, listen to music, stream photos from the cloud and even play video games.

How would you like to upgrade your system?

I would like to change AV receiver to something more powerful. I’ve had an Onkyo TX-NR636 since late 2014, it still runs great, but I know my speakers can perform better.

What piece of advice can you give to someone who wants to make a room like this?

It is important not to rush. You have to anticipate everything, make several drawings and ask the opinion of your loved ones even if you are stubborn. You need to get information, learn, test and listen to equipment if possible. You should never regret and be proud of what you create. There is no such thing as a small or large budget, only passionate people.

Discover Vincent’s private home theater